Back to basics: the account plan as a compass
When results fall short of objectives, the first reflex is to revisit the account plan.
Not to rewrite it, but to use it as a diagnostic tool.
The key questions:
- Are the defined priorities still aligned with the client's current challenges?
- Have the decision-makers changed?
- Are the resources mobilized still relevant?
- Has the client also revised its roadmap?
- Does the perceived value match the value delivered?
I emphasize a simple principle: the account plan is not a static document, it is a living process.
Revising it during a slowdown becomes an opportunity to renew strategic dialogue with the client and identify new levers for value creation.
Three levers of impact to revive a major account
When a goal seems out of reach, successful major account managers activate three levers of impact:
1. Refocus efforts on the real drivers of growth
80/20: Reassess the portfolio of initiatives and concentrate energy on high-impact opportunities, even if it means putting secondary projects on hold.
Dare to say no, even to certain customer requests, to stay aligned with strategic priorities.
Work on upselling and cross-selling where adoption is proven (you are sure that the customer is using it and benefiting from it).
2. Mobilize management
A key account in difficulty is not an individual failure: it is a company-wide issue.
Executives often play a decisive role in reopening doors or repositioning the company's value with the customer.
Hence the importance of an active sponsorship plan: which member of the executive committee can support the relationship and restart dialogue at the highest level? With a concrete, costed plan focused on customer benefits and validated by the finance department.
3. Reactivate co-creation
When performance slows down, it is necessary to rediscover the spirit of partnership.
The most profitable companies cultivate strong relationships between their teams and those of their customers: R&D with R&D, finance with finance, senior management with senior management.
The tighter the network, the greater the profitability and trust.
Turn decline into a lever for transformation
A key account that is slowing down can become a laboratory for progress.
It is often during these periods that true account managers reveal themselves: those who transform constraints into innovation.
Rethinking the value proposition, reviewing collaboration models, imagining new shared success indicators: these are all initiatives that can revive momentum.
One of the most effective practices is to introduce a shared economic perspective: how is the client's business model evolving? What hidden risks or costs can we help them reduce?
The KAM then becomes not just a supplier, but a strategic coach for the account, able to help their client better manage their own performance, not just buy better.
Six best practices for “catching up” on a KAM objective
1. Return to the data
Base the diagnosis on factual indicators (volumes, margins, share of voice).
2. Reopen the dialogue
Schedule a strategic meeting to share the situation, listen before proposing, and agree on a plan.
3. Reconfigure the account team
Temporarily bring in a technical expert, a financial manager, or a sponsor.
4. Reassess internal segmentation
Is the account still strategic? If so, redefine the expected mutual value.
5. Ritualize progress reports
Transform monthly follow-ups into a tool for collective management and shared responsibility (with values, risks, and decisions).
6. Celebrate small victories
Maintain internal motivation and customer confidence by showing that recovery is underway.
Conclusion: the spirit of Key Account Management
Catching up on a slipping target is not about fixing a gap: it is about reaffirming the KAM's vocation, which is to be a strategist serving shared value.
In an uncertain environment, the difference between a supplier and a partner is measured by the quality of the rebound, by their ability to turn decline into a lever for sustainable growth.
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